Julia Weimer is a Pre-Licensed Professional Counselor and play therapist.
She provides services to children between three and twelve years old. She specializes in working with children who have experienced trauma and those with ADHD or behavioral issues. She connects with her clients through expressive therapies and play therapy.
Experience
Julia began working in the mental health field in an inpatient facility for children who have experienced trauma, abuse, suicide attempts and behavioral issues. Julia furthered her experience by working at a partial hospitalization program for children needing emotional support beyond what their schools could provide. In addition to her outpatient counseling work at The Resiliency Center, she works as a school based therapist for children in kindergarten through second grade. In each of these settings, Julia has strengthened her skills in crisis intervention and supported children and families as they navigated complex school and healthcare environments.
Her work across all settings centers the concerns of children and their families, while empowering them to have a voice in the systems of which they are a part.
Specialties
Julia provides individual therapy and group therapy that including topics of emotion regulation, distress tolerance, communication skills, emotion identification, mindfulness, social skills, and healing trauma.
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy/Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT/CBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps people learn the impact of their thoughts on their mood and behavior and provides tools for changing one’s thoughts and making incremental (and therefore manageable) steps towards positive change.
Trauma-Focused CBT supports children impacted by trauma to look at their trauma — and thoughts and behaviors since their trauma — through new eyes. Children learn to connect the impact of their thoughts, develop an understanding of the ways their thinking controls their behavior, and allow the space for them to learn new ways to change and welcome new self-efficacy and happiness.
Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT)
Emotional-Focused Therapy supports children in increasing their awareness of their emotions and building acceptance of these feelings. Children often have big feelings but don’t know how to name or express them — or what to do when emotions take over. Through EFT, children learn skills to translate emotions into helpful information, so they can ask for support and support themselves in meaningful ways. EFT also supports children in developing their identity.
Play Therapy
Play is the natural language of children. Julia believes — and play therapy research has demonstrated — that the most effective way to connect with children is to enter their world of imagination. Play therapy offers a safe space for children to express their innate creativity. As children are seen and their stories (and feelings) honored through play therapy, they begin to see new possibilities, experience healing, and are empowered to change their behavior in a positive way. Play Therapy helps children learn to communicate better, develop problem-solving skills, build social-emotional skills, and express difficult thoughts and emotions.
